JOINT LEGISLATIVE AUDIT AND REVIEW COMMISSION of the Virginia General Assembly SPECIAL REPORT: Preservation of Revolutionary War Veteran Gravesites Members of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission Chairman Delegate Vincent F. Callahan, Jr. Vice-Chairman Senator Kevin G. Miller Senator Charles J. Colgan Delegate M. Kirkland Cox Delegate V. Earl Dickinson Senator J. Randy Forbes Delegate Frank D. Hargrove, Sr. Delegate Dwight C. Jones Senator Thomas K. Norment, Jr. Delegate Harry J. Parrish Delegate Lacey E. Putney Delegate John A. Rollison III Delegate John H. Rust, Jr. Senator Walter A. Stosch Mr. Walter J. Kucharski, Auditor of Public Accounts Director Philip A. Leone COPYRIGHT 2000, COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA Preface House Joint Resolution No. 530 and Senate Joint Resolution No. 345 from the 1999 Session directed a JLARC review of issues related to the care and maintenance of burial sites of Revolutionary War veterans. Virginia currently has a program to help provide for the care and maintenance of Confederate veteran gravesites, but has no similar program for veterans of the American Revolution. This final report provides a listing of Revolutionary War veteran burials that updates a list printed in the interim report for this study. The final report also contains recommendations and funding options for a program to provide care for these burial sites. JLARC staff estimate that there are about 560 cemetery sites and 705 grave markers that are potentially eligible for participation in a maintenance program re- ceiving State support. Some of the sites already receive certain maintenance care, so State assistance would serve to either help defray some of the current expenditures made by caretakers, or help them provide a higher level of maintenance care. Other sites receive little or no maintenance attention. Therefore, a program of State assis- tance may help to stimulate new maintenance activities at these sites. Cost estimates for a program of State-assisted maintenance care depend on a number of assumptions, and will require adjustment as the nature of the program is defined and based upon program experience. However, estimated costs at this time for a program providing State payments or tax credits of five dollars per Revolutionary War grave range from about $2,225 to $7,400 a year (plus minimal administrative expenses). A program offering baseline payments of $50 per cemetery is estimated to cost about $41,900 to $55,000 per year (including administrative costs). Finally, a pro- gram that provides funding beyond the $50 per cemetery baseline payment — for pur- poses that include the initial clean-up of neglected sites, extraordinary maintenance, and grants (or tax credits) to attract routine maintenance care to neglected sites — could cost around $100,000 per year in the early years of the program, and between $54,000 and $95,500 per year after the program has matured (with administrative costs included). On the behalf of JLARC staff, I would like to thank the numerous organiza- tions and individuals who assisted us during the review. Many of these are listed as sources in an appendix of this report. In particular, such a report would not have been possible if it were not for the work over the years of the Daughters and the Sons of the American Revolution (DAR and SAR). We also appreciate the contributions of the Department of Historic Resources, and a number of local historical and genealogical societies. Philip A. Leone Director January 23, 2001 JLARC Report Summary compiled list where Revolutionary War vet- eran burials are reported. This final report adds to that compiled list, and addresses the number and condition of cemeteries with Revolutionary War veteran burials, as well as the number and condition of the grave markers for these veterans. The report also provides recommendations for the develop- SPECIAL REPORT: ment of a program to provide care for these RESERVATION OF grave sites, and funding options. P JLARC staff’s best estimate is that there REVOLUTIONARY WAR are about 560 sites with Revolutionary War ETERAN RAVESITES veteran burials, and about 705 grave mark- V G ers that can be found today and are poten- IN VIRGINIA tially eligible for inclusion in a maintenance program. HJR 530 requires that the study “recommend a program to restore and pre- serve all [Revolutionary War veteran burial] December 2000 sites.” The option which appears to best Joint Legislative address this requirement could entail annual Audit and Review State funding of slightly above $100,000 in Commission the early stages of the program, and about $54,600 to $95,500 once the program has matured. At least in the early stages of the program, about half of these expenditures would be to meet the costs of developing the program, coordinating the program over time, and administering the funding. The House Joint Resolution No. 530 and other half of the expenditures are for grants Senate Joint Resolution No. 345 from the (or tax credits) to help pay the costs of pres- 1999 Session direct JLARC to compile a list ervation activities at the cemeteries. of sites where Revolutionary War veterans are buried and to study issues related to the Cemetery Site Visits care and maintenance of their burial sites. Were Conducted for the Virginia currently has a program to help pro- Second Phase of the Review vide for the care and maintenance of Con- JLARC staff compiled a list of 1,481 federate veteran gravesites. This program veterans, excluding the Colonial National is described in §10.1-2211 of the Code of Historical Part at Yorktown, and 2,217 in to- Virginia. However, there is no similar pro- tal, that are reportedly buried or recognized gram for the veterans who established the at specific locations in Virginia. As shown country’s independence during the Revolu- in the figure on the next page, many of the tionary War. localities with the greatest number of buri- An interim JLARC report, printed in als reported are in the Shenandoah Valley February 2000, focused on developing a and the southwestern part of the State. I Localities with the Most Veterans Reportedly Buried or Specifically Recognized One of the City of Winchester Loudoun Co. 43 12 localities with 36 the most veterans Rockingham Co. City of Alexandria 56 Augusta Co. 55 Rockbridge Co. 172 Botetourt Co. 49 Bedford Co. 45 Washington Co. 47 47 York Co. 738 44 37 Wythe Co. Campbell Co. The compiled list of veteran gravesites Best Estimate Is that About was “tested”, to determine the extent to 560 Sites with 705 Grave Markers which the gravesites that have been re- Are Potentially Eligible for a Maintenance Program ported can actually be found. JLARC staff By extrapolating from the compiled list conducted visits to 39 locations where Revo- of veteran burials and the results from the lutionary War veteran burials had been re- in-depth examination of selected sites, ported. JLARC staff developed estimates of the num- During these visits, JLARC staff sought ber of cemeteries and grave markers in the to find the reported cemeteries and grave Commonwealth that are potentially eligible markers. The general condition of the cem- for a maintenance program. The range in eteries and grave markers were observed. these estimates, as well as the best estimates, In most cases, a photograph of the marker are shown in the table on the next page. was taken, and a hand-held GPS (global positioning system) was used to note the Preservation Costs at longitude and latitude of the site. (Data ob- Cemeteries with Revolutionary tained from the site visit process is contained War Veteran Graves Include in Appendix D of the report). Based on the Both Routine Cemetery Care and Extraordinary Maintenance site visits, it appears that most of the cem- Routine maintenance costs at the cem- eteries with reported veteran burials can still eteries with at least one Revolutionary War be “found” today, and typically do have one veteran grave may range from $100,000 to or more markers that are intact. The condi- $800,000, with a single best cost estimate tion of the cemeteries visited and of the statewide of $336,000. The best estimate grave markers varied considerably. is based on a typical cost of $600 per cem- II Estimates of Number of Revolutionary War Veteran Cemeteries and Grave Markers Potentially Eligible for a Maintenance Program Number of Cemeteries Number of Markers Low Best High Low Best High Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimated Number 335 560 885 430 705 1,480 * Data excludes the Colonial National Historical Park at Yorktown. At the national park, 637 veterans of France who served and died in the American Revolution are recognized at the French Memorial Cemetery, and there are 99 colonial veterans who are honored on a memorial tablet. It is estimated that only about 50 of the 637 French veterans are actually buried at the cemetery. It is not known which veterans among the 637 are the ones buried at the cemetery, or how many and which ones are actually buried anywhere on Virginia soil. Similarly, the exact gravesite locations of the veterans on the memorial tablet are not known. etery per year. This typical cost can pro- Recommendations and Illustrative vide for routine maintenance (for example, Options for a Maintenance Program mowing) at a typical family cemetery, or in for Revolutionary War Veteran the oldest section of a larger cemetery, that Gravesites contains about 50 to 100 graves. The total Virginia’s Department of Historic Re- cost, of course, addresses many graves for sources (DHR) currently has statutory re- individuals buried near Revolutionary War sponsibility for the State’s existing veteran veterans who were not veterans, or not vet- gravesite program (the Confederate erans of that war.